Strawberry Basil Chocolate Chip Muffins

Sometimes you’ve got to take risks. You’ve got to quit that job that’s ruining your life. Or hop on a plane and go explore the world. Or kiss that someone you’ve been eyeing for weeks. Or say yes to the one you’ve loved so long. Life is an experiment. If you’re not kicking off your safety shoes from time to time and moving beyond your comfort zone, then I say you’re not really living.

Sometimes you’ve just gotta take a leap of faith. And sometimes you’ve gotta throw the basil in your strawberry muffin batter.

When the results turn out well, then here you are, on Earth, to tell about them.

Basil and strawberries are a combination in which I’ve grown quite fond. I know their sweetness and mintiness compliment one another and that I generally enjoy them when they’re hanging out in the same space. Pairing them with chocolate, however, and packaging it all in a muffin was an upshot I couldn’t predict. But as I said, taking chances can be fun, especially in the kitchen. So that’s what I did. I took a chance and threw the basil into the batter. Fortunately, I loved the results.

These aren’t overly sweet, so the chocolate doesn’t act as overkill or even seem strange next to a bite of basil. Instead, it plays up the sweetness of the strawberries, and then the basil sweeps in for a clean finish. I really love the complexity of this muffin. You’ll get a wide range of complimentary flavors that all come together for a unique and exciting bite. I’d like to try turning this into some kind of cake because I am totally dreaming of serving it up with a sweet scoop of vanilla ice cream. Though I suppose you could do that with these too.

Feel free to use all whole grain flour, but expect a denser turnout. To yield a moister, lighter muffin, go half and half, as in the recipe below.

Yield: 12 muffins - (you could probably squeeze 15 muffins if you have a 16-muffin tin, just make sure to check on them in the oven a few minutes early)

Ingredients

1 cup white unbleached flour

1 cup white whole wheat flour

2/3 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons butter, melted

3/4 cup milk

1 Tbsp. yogurt

1 1/3 cup strawberries, chopped

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 Tbsp. basil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400F. In a large bowl, add flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk together, and set aside.

In a separate bowl, blend together egg, butter, yogurt and milk.

Slowly add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, gently mixing until batter just comes together. Do not over mix. Fold in strawberries, chocolate chips and basil.

Place muffin liners in muffin tin. Fill each muffin tin about 2/3 full and bake for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean of batter. Try not to over bake in order to prevent dry muffins. Remove from tin and let cool on a wire wrack.